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HK416
The Heckler & Koch HK416 is an assault rifle designed and manufactured by Heckler & Koch. It uses the AR-15 platform, originally conceived as an improvement to the Colt M4 carbine with the notable inclusion of a gas-piston system derived from the H&K G36. Customers have the option of purchasing a new upper receiver, buffer and drive spring to refurbish M4s or buying a completely new build HK416. The HK416 is part of the Individual Carbine competition to replace the M4. History The United States Army's Delta Force, at the request of R&D NCO Larry Vickers, collaborated with the German arms maker Heckler & Koch to develop the new carbine. During development, Heckler & Koch capitalized on experience gained developing the Bundeswehr's Heckler & Koch G36 assault rifle, the US Army's XM8 rifle project (canceled in 2005) and the modernization of the British Armed Forces SA80 small arms family. The project was originally called the HK M4, but this was changed in response to a trademark infringement suit filed by Colt Defense. Delta Force replaced its M4s with the HK416 in 2004 after tests revealed that the piston operating system significantly reduces malfunctions while increasing the life of parts. The HK416 has been tested by the United States military and is in use with some law enforcement agencies and special operations units. It has been adopted as the standard rifle of the Norwegian Armed Forces as well. A modified variant underwent testing by the United States Marine Corps as the M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle. After the Marine Corps Operational Test & Evaluation Activity supervised a round of testing at MCAGCC Twentynine Palms, Fort McCoy, and Camp Shelby (for dust, cold-weather, and hot-weather conditions, respectively). As of March 2012, fielding of 452 IARs has been completed of 4,748 ordered. Five infantry battalions; 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion and 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, out of Camp Pendleton, CA, First Battalion, 3rd Marines, out of Marine Corps Base HI, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, NC; and 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, out of Fort Devens, MA have deployed the weapon. Design details The HK416 uses a proprietary gas system derived from the HK G36, replacing the direct impingement gas system used by the standard M16/M4. The HK G36 gas system was in turn partially derived from the AR-18 assault rifle designed in 1963. The HK system uses a short-stroke piston driving an operating rod to force the bolt carrier to the rear. This design prevents combustion gases from entering the weapon's interior, a shortcoming with direct impingement systems. The reduction in heat and fouling of the bolt carrier group increases the reliability of the weapon and extends the interval between stoppages. It also reduces operator cleaning time and stress on critical components. According to H&K "experience that Heckler & Koch gained during its highly successful 'midlife improvement programme' for the British Army SA80 assault rifle, have now borne fruit in the HK416". The HK416 is equipped with a proprietary accessory rail forearm with MIL-STD-1913 rails on all four sides. This allows most current accessories, used on M4/M16-type weapons, to be fitted to the HK416. The HK416 rail forearm can be installed and removed without tools by using the bolt locking lug as the screwdriver. The rail forearm is "free-floating" and does not contact the barrel, improving accuracy. The HK416 has an adjustable multi-position telescopic butt stock, offering six different lengths of pull. The shoulder pad can be either convex or concave and the stock features a storage space for maintenance accessories, spare electrical batteries or other small kit items. The trigger pull is 34 N. The empty weight of a HK416 box magazine is 250 g. The HK416's barrel is cold hammer forged with a 20,000-round service life and features a 6 grooves 178 mm (7 in) right hand twist. The cold hammer-forging process provides a stronger barrel for greater safety in case of an obstructed bore or for extended firing sessions. Modifications for an over-the-beach (OTB) capability such as drainage holes in the bolt carrier and buffer system are available; enabling the HK416 to be fired safely after being submerged in water. Differences from the M4 The HK416 is a modified variant of the American carbine, the M4. It includes international symbols for Safe, Semi-Automatic, and Fully automatic, a redesigned retractable stock which allows the user to rotate the butt plate, a new pistol grip designed by H&K, made to more ergonomically fit the hand and, attached to the rifle is a new single-piece hand guard with a free floating RIS system, used for mounting accessories. The most notable internal difference is the short stroke gas piston system, derived from the HK G36. To compensate for increased pressure due to the new gas system, a thicker barrel was also integrated. Furthermore, adjustable gas block with piston allows reliable operation on short-barrelled models with or without a suppressor attached. Finally, the HK416 includes a folding front sight, and a rear sight similar in design to the G3. The HK416 system is offered as an upper receiver, separate from the rest of the rifle, as a replacement to the standard issue M4 upper receiver. It can be attached to any existing AR-15 family rifles, giving them the new gas system, the new hand guard, and sights, while retaining the original lower receiver. The Heckler & Koch 416 can also be purchased as a fully assembled, stand alone carbine. Evaluation In July 2007 the US Army announced a limited competition between the M4 carbine, FN SCAR, HK416, XCR, and the previously-shelved HK XM8. Ten examples of each of the four competitors were involved. Each weapon fired 6,000 rounds in an "extreme dust environment". The purpose of the shoot-off was for assessing future needs, not to select a replacement for the M4. The XM8 scored the best, with only 127 stoppages in 60,000 total rounds, the FN SCAR Light had 226 stoppages, while the HK416 had 233 stoppages. The M4 carbine scored "significantly worse" than the rest of the field with 882 stoppages. The HK416 was one of the weapons displayed to US Army officials during an invitation-only Industry Day on November 13, 2008. The goal of the Industry Day was to review current carbine technology prior to writing formal requirements for a future replacement for the M4. The HK416 is now an entry in the Individual Carbine competition to replace the M4. In December 2009, a modified version of the HK416 was selected for the final testing in the Infantry Automatic Rifle program, designed to partially replace the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon at the squad level for the United States Marine Corps. It beat the three other finalists by FN Herstal and Colt Defense. In July 2010, the HK416 IAR was designated as the M27, and 450 were procured for additional testing. The Norwegian Army made an extensive evaluation before selecting the HK416 as its new primary firearm. Variants Military and Law Enforcement The HK416 models chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO available to the military and law enforcement market are: *'D10RS' - sub-compact with a 264 mm barrel *'D14.5RS' - carbine rifle 368 mm barrel *'D16.5RS' - rifle with 419 mm barrel *'D20RS' - full-sized rifle 505 mm barrel HK416 based derivates *'HK416C' - ultra-compact variant originally developed after a UKSF request. The HK416C has a 228 mm barrel and is expected to produce muzzle velocities of approximately 730 m/s. The firearm's precision is specified as ≈ 4 MOA (12 cm at 100 m) by Heckler & Koch. Though the HK416C has a high degree of component commonality with the HK416 family it has a HK416C specific shortened buffer tube and a sliding collapsible butt-stock similar to the ones used on compact variants of H&K's MP5 sub-machine gun, and the HK53 carbine which is often used by close protection teams within the British military. *'M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle' - squad automatic weapon developed from the D16.5RS for the United States Marine Corps Large caliber *'HK417' - larger caliber variant chambered for 7.62x51mm NATO Civilian Civilian variants of the HK416 and HK417 introduced in 2007 were known as MR223 and MR308. Both are semi-automatic rifles with several "sporterized" features. At the 2009 SHOT Show, these two firearms were introduced to the American civilian market renamed respectively MR556 and MR762. There is another variant of the MR556 called the MR556A1, which is an improved version of the former. It was created with input from American special forces units. The MR556A1 allows the upper receiver to be attached to any M16/M4/AR-15 family lower receiver, as the receiver take-down pins are in the same standard location. The original concept for the MR556 did not allow for this, as the take-down pins were located in a "non-standard" location. The MR223 maintains the "non-standard" location of the pins, disallowing attachment of the upper receiver to the lower receivers of any other M16/M4/AR-15 family of rifles. Category:5.56 mm firearms Category:Assault rifles 416 Category:Modern weapons of Germany Category:Police weapons